Mine
by 10MinutesToMidnight
Summary: Stephanie finally makes a decision and invites Ranger over for a long overdue conversation. Takes place after book 22. Reviews welcome! Stephanie Plum series.


"Please tell me you aren't going to eat that donut," Ranger teased, setting his coffee cup down and eyeing the pastry on the table between us. I'd already eaten the other two donuts that had been sitting there, while he'd eaten his customary whole-wheat bagel with fat-free cream cheese.

"Why, did you want it?" I joked, knowing that he would never eat something that unhealthy. The Boston Creme donut on the table was covered in chocolate icing and filled with creamy goodness, and just looking at it made me feel 5 pounds heavier. I doubted Ranger had ever indulged in one.

"Babe," he responded, the corner of his mouth hinting at a smile. For Ranger, Babe can mean a lot of things. It can mean hello, it can be a warning, and it can ask a question. Today, it meant that I was amusing him.

I'd invited him over to discuss something serous over breakfast, but chances to relax with Ranger didn't come often, and I wasn't inclined to ruin this one yet. I picked the donut up and looked it over, then set it down on my plate and took a drink of my coffee. I was stalling.

Unfortunately, Ranger wasn't a big fan of procrastination. He liked to deal with problems far in advance, something I both loved about him and found endlessly annoying. He watched me toy with my coffee mug for a few moments, then nudged my foot with his under the table.

"Babe." He said, lifting an eyebrow at me, inviting me to tell him what was on my mind.

I sighed. I wasn't ready for this, but I knew it couldn't wait any longer. "Joe asked me to marry him," I whispered into my coffee, nervous. I looked up at Ranger, taking in the brief flash of emotion that crossed his face before his familiar controlled mask fell into place. I took a deep breath, then continued. "I said no."

"Do you want to talk about it?" Ranger asked, his voice even, and I shrugged awkwardly.

"This... this THING between us. I can't marry him without figuring it out. I don't want to spend the rest of my life wondering if..." I broke off, wondering if it was too late to stop the conversation. I'd hidden my secret desire from him for so long, and now that the time had come to lay all of the cards on the table, I was afraid.

"If what?"

"I need to know if we could ever have a chance. If you and I could ever... I don't want to spend the rest of my life thinking I missed out, or waiting for a sign that you might want more than what we've had." I played with the hem of my flannel shirt, not looking at him. I wasn't sure I wanted to see his face.

"A sign?" He asked softly, and I nodded, not looking up at him yet. There was a long silence at the table, broken only by Rex running at his hamster wheel. Finally, Ranger spoke. "Babe... do you want me to eat the donut?"

I looked up at him, surprised and annoyed that he seemed to be teasing me when I was being serious. I picked the donut up, made a show of licking off a patch of the chocolate icing, and tossed the donut back on my plate. "I licked it, it's mine." I said, not even wanting the donut anymore, "if you aren't going to be serious..."

In a flash, he was out of his chair and around the table, pulling me up against him and cutting off the rest of my words. He backed me up against the wall and kissed me like he meant it, his hands cradling my face and his tongue battling with mine. When he finally pulled back, I was breathing heavily and I'd almost forgotten what we were talking about.

"Yes," he said roughly, and I looked up at him in dazed confusion. He grinned when he noticed my expression, and traced his thumb over my cheek. "Yes, we can try. I can't make any promises, but-"

Realizing what he was saying, I wrapped my arms around his neck and kissed him again. He was willing to give us a chance! He pressed me harder against the wall, and I felt his length pressed tightly against my thigh. His hands tangled in my curly brown hair while mine held tight to handfuls of his black t-shirt. His hands ventured to my chest, undoing the buttons on my shirt before pushing it free to fall to the floor. His lips moved down my neck, his warm breath on my skin making my knees weak. My hands grasped roughly at his hair as his lips travelled lower...

Later we lay entwined on my bed, nude bodies damp with sweat and still trembling from pleasure and exertion. I would have been content to lie like that forever, but Ranger had other plans. He rolled us over and propped himself up on one elbow, staring down at me.

"It isn't going to be easy," he warned, "but we've been dancing around this for too long. I need to see if we can make it, too."

I felt a warmth rush through me, and I smiled up at him.

"Besides," he said, a wicked grin crossing his face, "I licked it, so it's mine."

Authors Note- this isn't the style I usually write, but I wanted to try to match the original author's style. I'll hopefully update some of my HP stories soon. Thanks for reading! The prompt was "I licked it, so it's mine."


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